Second Glance: New England

The Sounders moved to within four points of MLS-leading LA with a 2-1 win over the New England Revolution on Sunday.

The Sounders FC extended their unbeaten streak to six and their winning streak to three with a 2-1 come-from-behind win over the New England Revolution Sunday at CenturyLink Field. The win boosts the Sounders to 8-4-7 (31 points) and second in the Western Conference.

Turning PointI don’t know that there was a true turning point in the match. Outside of the Sainey Nyassi goal, I don’t know that New England was ever in control of this match. Even when they held the 1-0 lead, Seattle was confident they would wind up victorious. When Tyson Wahl connected on a free kick, then Alvaro Fernandez scored before halftime, it just made Seattle’s control all the more evident.

StandoutsMauro Rosales was deemed Man of the Match by Sigi Schmid for the third straight match, picking up an assist on the Fernandez goal and drawing the foul that set up Wahl’s goal. All-told, he’s been incredible in any role Schmid has asked of him and Sunday was no different. He is becoming like Osvaldo Alonso in that sense – that you can pencil him in as a standout in each match he plays.Roger Levesque ended a great week for him with an assist on the game-winning goal just one game after his first career MLS brace. Starting up top with Rosales, Levesque was ever-active keeping defenders on their toes at all times.

What We LearnedReserves Matter – With six players who started on opening night out due to injury or suspension and another prominent player in Brad Evans out due to injury, the Sounders didn’t miss a beat and churned out another great performance against the Revs.This Team May Be Pretty Good – The Sounders are currently second in MLS with 31 points, behind only the LA Galaxy. If the result in their match in the season opener had been reversed and Seattle won 1-0, they would currently have the best record in the league. Not bad for a team that some in the media were calling disappointing two weeks ago.

Next In LineThe Sounders will face the LA Galaxy on July 4 at the Home Depot Center in Carson, California. It will be the second straight year that these two teams will meet on Independence Day. First, though, they will face the Kitsap Pumas at Starfire in the third round of the US Open Cup on Tuesday. Tickets are still available as the Sounders look to go a run to their third straight US Open Cup crown.